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Is Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF (RYT) a Strong ETF Right Now?

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A smart beta exchange traded fund, the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF debuted on 11/01/2006, and offers broad exposure to the Technology ETFs category of the market.

What Are Smart Beta ETFs?

The ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on market capitalization weighted indexes that are designed to represent the market or a particular segment of the market.

Market cap weighted indexes work great for investors who believe in market efficiency. They provide a low-cost, convenient and transparent way of replicating market returns.

However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta.

These indexes attempt to select stocks that have better chances of risk-return performance, based on certain fundamental characteristics or a combination of such characteristics.

Even though this space provides many choices to investors--think one of the simplest methodologies like equal-weighting and more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting--not all have been able to deliver first-rate results.

Fund Sponsor & Index

Because the fund has amassed over $2.46 billion, this makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Technology ETFs. RYT is managed by Invesco. RYT, before fees and expenses, seeks to match the performance of the S&P 500 Equal Weight Information Technology Index.

The S&P 500 Equal Weight Information Technology Index equally weights stocks in the information technology sector of the S&P 500 Index.

Cost & Other Expenses

Expense ratios are an important factor in the return of an ETF and in the long-term, cheaper funds can significantly outperform their more expensive cousins, other things remaining the same.

Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.40% for RYT, making it one of the least expensive products in the space.

RYT's 12-month trailing dividend yield is 0.56%.

Sector Exposure and Top Holdings

ETFs offer diversified exposure and thus minimize single stock risk, but it is still important to delve into a fund's holdings before investing. Most ETFs are very transparent products and many disclose their holdings on a daily basis.

Representing 100% of the portfolio, the fund has heaviest allocation to the Information Technology sector.

Looking at individual holdings, Enphase Energy Inc (ENPH - Free Report) accounts for about 1.92% of total assets, followed by Arista Networks Inc (ANET - Free Report) and Salesforce.com Inc (CRM - Free Report) .

Its top 10 holdings account for approximately 15.52% of RYT's total assets under management.

Performance and Risk

The ETF has lost about -13.01% so far this year and is up roughly 9.10% in the last one year (as of 03/24/2022). In the past 52-week period, it has traded between $260.03 and $327.55.

The ETF has a beta of 1.13 and standard deviation of 27.61% for the trailing three-year period, making it a medium risk choice in the space. With about 77 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk.

Alternatives

Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technology ETF is an excellent option for investors seeking to outperform the Technology ETFs segment of the market. There are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider as well.

Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK - Free Report) tracks Technology Select Sector Index and the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT - Free Report) tracks MSCI US Investable Market Information Technology 25/50 Index. Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF has $44.89 billion in assets, Vanguard Information Technology ETF has $48.79 billion. XLK has an expense ratio of 0.10% and VGT charges 0.10%.

Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Technology ETFs.

Bottom Line

To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center.

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